Rationing

During WWI the German Navy launched an all-out submarine warfare, 470 ships were sunk between January and March 1917 and in April 1 in 4 ships leaving a British port would never return. Food and fuel ran low. The food controller, Lord Devonport issued many regulations such as; windows displays were not to flaunt goods; sweets were not to cost more than such and such; buns were to be made in a particular way; one day a week was to be meatless. He also put the country's flour mills under government control and restricted beer production. April and May 1917 brought the near collapse of the country. Britain only had six weeks' supply of wheat left (not that the public knew this), and sugar was practically unobtainable. The public were strongly encouraged to eat a quarter less bread and to avoid flour in pastry. A Cultivation of Land Order turned over every unoccupied urban lot to the Food Production Department and men who were experienced with traction engines were exempted from military duty to work on farms. At the end of the war the food ministry employed 27000 people and controlled 94% of everything eaten and drunk in Great Britain. The ministry bought up surpluses of foreign foods. Rationing was introduced in February 1918 when people started to hoard food and a reported million a day queues for food. The rationing applied to most major food stuffs such as meat, butter and sugar etc.